As a number of players have learned, not being drafted doesn’t mean your NBA dreams are over.
Multiple players have gone from undrafted free agents to valuable contributors, including four-time Defensive Player of the Year Ben Wallace and former Sixth Man of the Year and All-Star John Starks.
In recent years, players like Fred Vanvleet, Alex Caruso and Lu Dort have gone on to win championships and earn end-of-season awards after not being picked in their draft classes. Now the Oklahoma City Thunder have the chance to add another player to that list.
On Saturday, OKC inked Chris Youngblood, an undrafted free agent from the 2025 class, to a two-way contract. Youngblood joins 2025 second-round pick Brooks Barnhizer and 2024 undrafted free agent Branden Carlson as the Thunder’s trio of two-way players.
Youngblood entered the 2025 NBA Draft after three years at Kennesaw State and one season apeice at South Florida and Alabama. During his final year in the NCAA, the 6-foot-4, 221-pound sharpshooter averaged 10.3 points and 2.3 rebounds per game for the Crimson Tide.
Youngblood made history as the first former Kennesaw State player to sign an NBA contract.
In 150 college basketball games across five seasons, Youngblood shot 39.3% from beyond the arc, averaging 5.6 attempts per game. This could make the 24-year-old a perfect fit in Oklahoma City, as the Thunder needed more shooting during last season’s playoff run.
Of course, it is unlikely that Youngblood makes much of an impact for OKC as a rookie, but if the talented wing can develop within the Thunder’s system like so many other young players have, he could have a bright future in the NBA, even if it isn’t with Mark Daigneault and company.
In six games for the Thunder this preseason, Youngblood averaged 11 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 20.7 minutes per game. The rookie’s best performance came on Oct. 11 against Indiana, where Youngblood tallied 25 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and just 1 turnover in 31 minutes.
With the OKC Blue, Oklahoma City’s G League team, Youngblood should get plenty of opportunity to showcase his skills, but also grow and improve as a player. Daigneault and general manager Sam Presti have shown that they are more than willing to empty the bench during the regular season, often giving developmental minutes to young players like Ousmane Dieng and even Ajay Mitchell during the 2024-25 season.
Needless to say, the 2025 undrafted free agent seems to have found a good landing spot to jumpstart his NBA career.
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